Inspired by overseas digital art exhibitions, a new immersive exhibit has reached windy Wellington’s The Grid Art Space.

When I first saw the name of the exhibit ‘Nowadeus’, I wasn’t fully sure how to pronounce it.

Until artist Tim Christie corrected me and said it was pronounced like “nowadays”.

Inspired by deities, Christie took on a modern-day approach to devotions and obsessions we see in our daily lives.

Based on his previous work that is often half-human, half-animal inspired, the idea of making it in relation to religion and gods was the inspiration for the exhibit.

“That was really the seed of the idea, that was where it started from,” says Christie.

“There’s mythological half-animal, half-human creatures, which is quite old world in a way, but obviously done in a very modern digital design representing these modern-day religions. So, it’s a real juxtaposition of time.”

Young creative duo Delainy Jamahl and Shannon Brosnahan Inglis of Wellington’s The Grid Art Space first approached Christie after they saw immersive and digital exhibits in New York.

Jamahl says that for the past five years, the duo has been working towards a large-scale and immersive installation like the one they saw in New York to bring to New Zealand.

“I guess creating an immersive space for us really felt like the logical path on where we were going. We just didn’t know it until we saw it and then it was, ‘okay, well here it is’,” he adds.

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With this in mind, Christie wanted to make something that wasn’t just animated.

Nowadeus utilises animation, 2D and 3D design and sound design to make it as immersive as possible.

By making it immersive, Christie says people can interpret the work differently through the “bizarre optical experiences” and “the beauty of animation”.

To make it work, Jamahl says they used 3D tools and animation capabilities to make this come true.

“We went through quite a lot of research and development of what we could possibly do,” he says,

Tools like CINEMA 40, Blender and traditional pipeline tools for VFX and motion graphics were used to make Nowadeus come to life.

“Fun fact, it was black and white all the way up until about two or three weeks before we opened, and that is when we added colour” added Jamahl.

“It was way more intense and high energy, and I just thought that the energy with colour in this is incredible.”

With the exhibit now open, both Christie and Jamahl says that they are intending to tour it around the world where there are digital immersive studios, such as Australia, the US and Europe.

“Our sites would be a bit more on the international market, but you never know what kind of opportunities come up,” Jamahl says.

And Christie says that is the beauty of digital art; “being able to export it so easily”.

Nowadeus is open till September 1 in Wellington’s The Grid Art Space.